TRIAL AND ERROR | short stories + snippets

Together, they emerged from the other side of the ravine. Syrtika understood immediately why that part of the mountain was called the Pink Meadow. She could see every type of pink flower that she remembered the name of and even some she didn't remember the name of. Another stream curled idly through the meadow, its hum harmonising the cicadas in their song.

Though the smog and whispers were behind them, Syrtika kept a tight grip on Gnak's hand. Gnak didn't seem to mind.

The step into the meadow was a step into warmth. Without the thick foliage of trees to keep the air cool, the day was hot. The rain had thinned the clouds enough for sunlight to brush through.

Syrtika was slow to walk so that she could trample as few flowers as possible. They tickled her exposed ankles. Gnak waded through the meadow with half of her body lost beneath the pink.

Syrtika still couldn't understand how Gnak knew where to go in this endless sea of flowers, but she trusted her entirely. Sure enough, they soon came upon a circle. It was lined with stones and within it, the same pink flowers seemed to glimmer.

That was where Gnak tugged her hand out of Syrtika's.

"I can't go with you," she explained when Syrtika turned to her in panic. "Don't worry, I'll wait here."

The goblin sat down in the grass. Some of the flowers grew so tall that their petals reached her ears.

"It'll be okay. I be-b-believe in you."

Syrtika shut her eyes and took a deep breath the way she had often seen her sister do whenever she had to address a large crowd of people. Thinking of Idisha's brave perseverance and Gnak's easy self-assurance, Syrtika stepped into the circle.

Gnak had said that she would need to ask politely to talk to the fairy. Syrtika had only managed to think to herself once about how she should ask when a voice spoke.

"What may I help you with, young elf?"

She flinched, eyes flying open.

The fairy who landed in front of her was so beautiful, Syrtika lost all her words for a moment.

Her black hair is even longer than Syrtika's, brushing the back of her calves even in twin braids. Her deep blue wings matched her clothes, and her hands and feet were decorated with intricate mehndi designs. Her lips thinned into an encouraging smile.

"Well..."

Syrtika glanced at Gnak over her shoulder. The goblin had scooped a grasshopper from the grass and tried to pet it without scaring it off. Sensing Syrtika's gaze, she looked up and smiled, giving a thumbs up with her grasshopper-free hand.

"It's my declaration in three days..."

"Yes," the fairy said with a nod. "The kingdom has been preparing for the celebration for a long time."

Syrtika hummed. Fidgeting with the strap of her satchel, she bowed her head, which made the yellow flower Gnak had tucked into her hair all the way back at the marsh fall.

"The thing is that I will be declared the prince but I would much prefer to be declared a princess."

Syrtika stared at the ground. That was only the second time she had said the words in her life—telling Gnak having been the first—and while the words still stumbled from her mouth, speaking them out loud brought a rush of excitement too.

"If that is who you feel you are, then that is who you ought to be," the fairy said.

She looked up nervously. "But I don't have a gift."

"You have many gifts, Syrtika. Magic can take infinite forms."

Yes, Syrtika thought, there were dozens of princesses and they each had a unique gift. But she did not have magic of any kind. How could she claim to be a princess when she did not have what was fundamental to them?

The fairy, seemingly capable of reading her worries from her face, smiled again. She stepped closer to be able to give Syrtika's arm a comforting squeeze.

"There are many different kinds of girls. And boys, and men and women. I'll tell you a secret–" she leaned down to whisper, even if Gnak was the only other being in the Pink Meadow. "–I wasn't born as a fairy either. Sometimes we are given the gift to create ourselves as we feel we should be."

The fairy stepped back. "You must get home, Syrtika. Your parents are worried about you. I feel that you may find them more supportive than you expect."

Syrtika nodded.

The fairy plucked a pink zinnia from the ground and with a sprinkle of fairy dust, turned it into a necklace, each petal becoming an intricate twist of gold. She clasped it around Syrtika's neck.

"Be true to yourself, Syrtika. That is important for a princess. I hope this gift will remind you of that when you need it."

She thanked her and the fairy stepped out of the circle to approach Gnak. The goblin stumbled to her feet and bowed as low as she could.

"You have done a selfless act in guiding Syrtika here, Gnak."

"You know my name?" the goblin asked, eyes wide.

"I know your mother." The fairy smiled. "She has raised you well, as I knew she would. Never allow the world to weaken your confidence. That is the rarest of gifts.

"Here, take this." She held out a hand and Gnak slowly offered her palm. The fairy dropped a seed into it. "When you plant it and watch it grow, you will find that it will guide you in times when you need it most."

"Thank you." Holding tight onto the seed, Gnak bowed again.

"You need to get home as well. You are not meant to be on this side of the stream alone, are you?"

Gnak's cheeks burned. Her face split into a sheepish smile, missing teeth leaving gaps in it.

"Take care of each other on the way back." These were the fairy's final words before she disappeared into the wind.

Gnak turned to Syrtika and beamed. Syrtika bounced through the meadow to hug her, not entirely sure why, but she felt that it was what she wanted to do, so she did. Gnak was frozen for only a moment before reciprocating the embrace.

"Let's get you b-back to the city then," Gnak said. "I guess you couldn't stay a liiiiiittle longer so I could show you my house first."

"I'm sure that would be okay. As long as you show me the way back."

"Good! My mum makes the best mushroom pepper fry. I'm at your service, Princess Syrtika."

Syrtika interlocked hands with her friend to allow Gnak to guide her back through the meadow, then across the ravine, and all the way back to the marsh and over the rain-flooded stream to the Troll Wood. And when Gnak and her mother came with her back to the city and the castle, she didn't find the thought of becoming a princess all that scary anymore.